Buyer's Guide

Why Should You Become Certified?

Dance Vision is thrilled to announce the creation of the Dance Vision Teachers Certification Training Workshops. Our workshops are a series of one-week seminars for ballroom dance professionals, which are taught by the nationally renowned teacher-training expert Diane Jarmolow. Our systematic study program is designed to support professionals at all levels of their careers, whether they are veteran instructors who would like professional certification, or avid social dancers who dream of making a career in the ballroom dance world. Dance Vision believes that dance teachers are high-level professionals who have a profound impact on their students’ lives. It is a career that challenges your body, your mind, and your heart. We are committed to training professional teachers to achieve the highest standard of professional excellence in a supportive and challenging environment.

Please read the workshop descriptions carefully in order to determine which programs will be the best for you. In this revolutionary new program, all workshops will follow the NDCA-approved Dance Vision syllabus. Ballroom dance teachers will have the full support of our DVIDA manuals and the corresponding videos, which are produced using expert champions to demonstrate all of the nuances taught in our manuals. Guidance on the professional certification examination system will also be provided.

Why Should You Become Certified?

 You will become a better teacher
The process of preparing for your certification exam will teach you dance concepts you may not have fully understood before. You will improve both your verbal and your presentation skills. You will learn the precise vocabulary for describing the technical elements of dance figures. This will help your explanations become clear, succinct, and consistent. Your knowledge of alignments will improve your ability to choreograph routines for your students. You will expand your knowledge of musical terms and concepts, and you will understand how dancing and music relate. Finally, the process of technical mastery will improve your eye, so you will know instantly how to correct your students.

 You will become a better dancer
You may be able to dance a lovely left turning box, but can you articulate the sway on every single step, for both leader and follower, instantly? The technical expertise required to pass your certification exam will catapult your dancing to an entirely new level. The preparation will fill in any gaps in your own learning. You will learn a series of technique “rules” that will make your dancing consistent, and will help you to master new, advanced figures. You will develop a language that will help your work in dance partnerships. Above all, you will achieve a true mastery of dance technique that will stay with you for the rest of your career.

 You will achieve an objective standard of professional excellence
Once you successfully passed your certification exam, you will have a certificate that you can display to the world declaring your expertise. You will be able to attract serious students, and charge more for your services. You will be a desirable employee in dance studios around the country. You can even obtain your judging credential. Your certification is the first step to being recognized as a national expert. And your confidence will soar for having met and mastered this challenge!

Workshops Leading To Professional Certification

During these workshops you will discover that preparing for a professional exam is one of the most important learning experiences of your professional career. The upcoming examination provides the incentive for you to truly master the material. You will acquire a deep understanding of the technical aspects of the dance figures as well as learning new ways to explain the patterns to your students. You will learn the precise technical language used to notate and describe dance steps taught around the world, and you will also be able to practice answering examination questions in a friendly environment of mutual support. At the end of this process, you will have acquired poise, self-confidence, and a tremendous sense of accomplishment for having met this challenge.

We will help you schedule your professional examination either immediately following your seminar or at a later date, should you decide to spend additional time preparing on your own.

Since preparing for a professional examination is a rigorous process, we must maximize the hours we have together in the classroom. Therefore, each of the workshops listed has a very specific prerequisite: you must be able to dance all of the syllabus figures covered on your examination as both a leader and a follower using good technique, before the first day of your seminar.